As a Senior Product Security Engineer at Toast, you will be responsible for identifying and triaging application vulnerabilities, providing remediation guidance, and selecting and implementing tools to thwart various attack vectors. Your involvement will extend to improving developer tooling and practices to support a robust secure software development lifecycle (SSDLC), and you'll play a key role in educating and guiding other teams in making informed security decisions.

To apply for the Senior Product Security Engineer position at Toast, you should have a minimum of 5 years of experience in application security. A strong understanding of common web application vulnerabilities and edge-based attack vectors is crucial, along with proficiency in analyzing web traffic patterns. Familiarity with compliance standards like PCI DSS and strong problem-solving skills will also be essential.

Toast is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace, especially within the Senior Product Security Engineer team. We strive to create a culture that embraces diverse backgrounds and perspectives, providing equitable opportunities for all employees. This commitment ensures that our team not only competes at the highest levels but also creates exceptional experiences for our restaurant partners.

In your role as a Senior Product Security Engineer at Toast, you will work with a variety of tools and technologies, including web application firewalls (WAF), content delivery networks (CDNs), and security testing tools for the secure software development lifecycle (SSDLC) such as SAST and DAST. Knowledge of cloud security solutions and infrastructure-as-code technologies like Terraform is also a plus.

At Toast, the team environment for a Senior Product Security Engineer is collaborative and supportive, fostering a #OneTeam attitude. You will be part of a driven group that works closely together to tackle complex security challenges, offering guidance and expertise across various departments to ensure that security is an integral part of the development process.

To effectively answer this question, detail a specific vulnerability you faced, outlining its impact, what steps you took to remediate it, and the tools or methodologies you used. Explain how your actions helped secure the application and highlight any changes you implemented to prevent similar issues in the future.

Discuss how you evaluate vulnerabilities based on factors such as severity, impact, exploitability, and the sensitivity of data handled by the application. Share your approach to communicating these priorities with development teams and how you work together to mitigate risks accordingly.

In your response, describe your familiarity and experience with SSDLC principles. Share specific practices you've implemented or improved upon, such as integrating security testing into development stages and training developers on secure coding techniques.

Share your hands-on experience with configuring, tuning, and optimizing WAFs. Discuss particular instances where a WAF helped mitigate attacks or protect against specific threats, emphasizing your role in those processes.

Discuss your approach to continuous learning, including following security news sources, participating in relevant forums, attending conferences, and engaging with communities. This shows your proactive mindset in staying informed on trends in cybersecurity.

List relevant security certifications you possess, such as CCSP, CISSP, or CSSLP. Explain how each certification has improved your knowledge base, skills, and ability to contribute to securing applications effectively.

Provide an example that demonstrates your ability to communicate complex security concepts in simple terms. Highlight your approach to ensuring that non-technical stakeholders could understand and make informed decisions related to security.

Outline the steps you would take, including planning, reconnaissance, scanning for vulnerabilities, manual testing, and analyzing results. Emphasize the importance of documentation and communication of findings to development teams to drive the remediation process.

Share your strategies for creating engaging training programs, including tailored content that addresses industry-specific threats. Discuss how ongoing education is vital to maintaining a security-first mindset across teams.

Reflect on your passion for security and how it aligns with Toast's mission to support the restaurant industry. Share what aspects of the role excite you, including the opportunity to work on challenging security problems and collaborate with diverse teams.